The NFL Draft season is officially underway with the Senior Bowl concluding on Saturday.
This event marks the beginning of the off-season for many teams as it is the first “up close” look at the prospects in the draft.
For scouts, coaches, and executives, the meat and potatoes of the week happen in the practices, but for fans, watching the Saturday game is the big prize.
As the off-season begins with Dallas going “all in”, it is no secret that hitting big in the 2024 Draft is crucial for success in the incoming season.
In other words, you can bet the Cowboys’ top scouts and executives had their eyes glued to the field during the week and on Saturday.
The focus for Dallas was specific players they had their eyes on, position groups of need, and anybody who was not on the radar that shined in practice or the game.
So, let’s go ahead and recap the week of practice and Saturday’s head-to-head matchup from a Cowboys draft perspective.
Wide Reciever Standouts
The Cowboys have invested a lot into the wide receiver position in recent years.
Whether it be drafting CeeDee Lamb in the first round, trading for Brandin Cooks, or extending Michael Gallup, Dallas has put a lot of money and effort into their receiving room.
In this off-season, however, both Cooks and Gallup could become “cap casualties”, leaving Lamb and a few unproven weapons at receiver.
This would leave Dallas in need of at least one rookie wideout, and there were more than a few options that balled out in the Senior Bowl.
Former Georgia Bulldog, Ladd McConkey, is a slot receiver who will be heavily connected to the Cowboys in the draft process.
He is expected to be in the second-round area which would give the Cowboys a chance to address a bigger need like offensive line or linebacker before filling in the receiving corps.
McConkey had a great week of practice and capped it off with a 15-yard grab on one of his two targets on Saturday.
Other big names that will be connected to Dallas are guys like South Carolina’s Xavier Legette, Georgia’s Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, and son of NFL Hall of Famer Jerry Rice, USC’s Brenden Rice.
Both Legette and Rice had big moments in practice this week, and Rosemy-Jacksaint capped off the game with an impressive 30-yard touchdown.
Oregon IOL, Jackson Powers-Johnson
Coming into this week, there was a debate about who the best interior offensive lineman in this draft class is. That debate is over for good.
Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson had the single best week of any player at the Senior Bowl, and he might just be the Cowboys’ first-round pick if he falls to 24.
With Tyler Biadasz set to hit free agency, Dallas might be in the center market and there would be no better solution than drafting Powers-Johnson.
He is incredibly strong, balanced, quick, and he has a motor that you just can not teach. He does not quit on a single play.
Everybody knows the big guys in the trenches never get the love a skill position gets, and yet the most viewed highlights from the Senior Bowl this week were of Powers-Johnson, not a quarterback or wide receiver.
The former Oregon Duck had such a good week that he may not even reach the Cowboys’ first pick.
If he does, however, they have to sprint to the podium and lock down the center position for the next ten years.
Dallas might have an opportunity to pair Powers-Johnson with the mentorship of a future Hall of Famer in Zack Martin.
If they do that, the Cowboys could have another perennial All-Pro on their hands and a perfect eventual successor to Martin.
The Linebacker Options
Linebacker was not talked about much this week at the Senior Bowl, but there were some really great performances, especially by one of the headliners at the position in this draft class.
NC State’s Payton Wilson was given the Chuck Bednarik Award in 2023, an honor for the best defensive player in college football that season, and Wilson played like that this week.
Wilson is one of the fastest linebackers in the class and shows a true sense for getting to the football. He had 138 tackles in just 12 games in 2023.
It is safe to say Wilson was the best linebacker on the field in the Senior Bowl, but it was not just him that stood out.
UNC’s Cedric Gray blew up the game on Saturday; he led his team with 7 tackles and 2 pass breakups.
You can bet that caught the Dallas front office’s attention.
Gray projects more in the 3rd-5th round area, while Wilson is all but locked in to go in the first two rounds.
The hype is significantly more on Wilson’s side right now, but with a performance as good as Gray had and the combine on the horizon, we are looking at a potential draft-board-riser.
Dallas has a lot of options at linebacker in this class, but the guys at this year’s Senior Bowl put their abilities on display before anybody else.
You can expect that to play a factor when the Cowboys are on the clock this April.